COOPERSTOWN _ Baseball cards and other memorabilia have long been collected as part of the spirit of the game.
Those who have the good fortune of owning a photograph, baseball or card with the signatures of players such as Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, Shoeless Joe Jackson, Mickey Mantle, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Ty Cobb or Nolan Ryan probably own a collectible item worth a ``pretty penny.''
However, baseball fans who were scrambling Friday for autographs from retired players in Cooperstown were not necessarily looking to gain an item worth a fortune.
Allen Jennaro, of Monroe, and Steve Port, of Carmel, said Friday that the value of most signatures is not that great because, in coming to Induction Weekend for years, they have become very ``common.''
``Nobody here is getting an autograph as part of an investment,'' Jennaro said.
Jennaro and Port, who grew up in the Bronx together, said they have been coming to Cooperstown for Induction Weekend for 15 years.
``It is the only time we get to spend time together, just the two of us, and pal around and act like buffoons,'' Port said.
The men said they have made the trip an annual tradition _ coming to the village on Friday and leaving Saturday night. They said they typically do not stay for the inductions because it is too hectic.
One exception was Ryan's induction, Jennaro said.
"We have a routine," Port said. "We go around, get autographs, smoke cigars and drink a little. It's a baseball carnival.''
Port said that each year, he and Jennaro eat at the same places and do the same activities, including visiting the National Hall of Fame and Museum and going to the Oneonta Tigers game played at Doubleday Field.
``Because we do the same things each year, we probably miss out on some things, but we absolutely love it here,'' Port said.
They said they call Hall of Famer Bob Feller the "mayor of Cooperstown" because he can be seen walking the streets and signing autographs.
They said they once got a ball autographed by the former pitcher that said, ``109 mph fastball, but still getting faster.''
This made them chuckle, they said, because there were no such thing as time ``clickers'' back in Feller's day.
Other players the New York Yankees fans said they have enjoyed meeting in Cooperstown include Whitey Ford, an 18-year Yankees pitcher, and Yogi Berra, who played most of his career for the Yankees and is regarded as one of baseball's greatest catchers.
Another past highlight, they said, was having beer with Chris ``Mad Dog'' Russo from WFAN.
The men said the only real change has been the price of autographs. Fifteen years ago, Port said, he purchased Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew's autograph for $15; today, it sells for $85.
From Scotland to Cooperstown
Matt Reid, 61, came to the United States from Scotland. Before then, he said, he never saw a baseball game.
He said he got interested in collecting ballplayer's autographs in 1989, considering it a hobby he can pass down to his kids.
Reid, a Boston Red Sox fan, said he mostly collects autographs from his favorite team _ about 700 autographs from Sox players since 1925.
On Friday, Reid was walking around Main Street with special edition Hall of Fame baseballs, looking for autographs.
Reid said this was the first time he has been to Cooperstown for Induction Weekend, having bought a Hall membership last year. The Maine resident said he plans on making the trip a tradition.
Murray King, head of the board of directors for the We Care foundation in Canada, organizes signing sessions at TJ's Place each year. He said he has been coming to the event since 1982, and Hall of Famers such as Berra, Rollie Fingers and Ferguson Jenkins have been dedicated to supporting the cause by signing each year.
Twenty-six players _ 22 Hall of Famers and four Canadian Hall of Famers _ contribute to the foundation, King said, and they pay for their expenses.
"We are able to keep costs down because airlines donate flights to us," he added.
King said he is friends with restaurant owner Ted Hargrove, so that is why he has the signings there.
``He has a heart as big as he is, and he ain't no light fellow,'' said King about Hargrove.
King said the attendance in Cooperstown each year depends on who is being inducted, but ``autograph hounds'' will come no matter what.
As King showed off fishing buddy photographs, he said he is friends with the players.
``These guys will sign anything for me,'' he said.
King said he has been with the We Care Foundation for 28 years, starting as a chaperone, and has led the board for 17 years.
The foundation grants last wishes to children ages 1 to 9, according to King, and covers Canada and 15 U.S. states.
One boy's selfless wish
The most-heartwarming wish, King said, was asked by a 7-year-old boy named Eric Thompson.
King went into the boy's hospital room to tell him he was going to get his last wish of seeing wild orcas. The boy, King said, pointed across the room and asked if another boy, Jack, could get his last wish instead.
Eric was willing to give up his wish because Jack was expected to die first, King said.
"That was just so amazing to me, coming from a person so young," he said.
Also signing for a good cause, fighting juvenile diabetes, were Jenkins, Lee Smith, George Foster and Bert Campaneris. A fan could get a ball signed by one of the players and get a cubical to put it in at the Cooperstown Bat Company for a $20 donation.
A TV star also signs
Also in the village signing autographs was actor and singer John Schneider, who was Bo Duke in "The Dukes of Hazzard" television series. He said he was asked to visit by his brother Robert, who lives in Cooperstown.
Schneider, who lives in California, said he just finished filming a movie in Florida and figured it would be a good time to visit.
Schneider said he has been to Cooperstown a few times, but never during Induction Weekend.
As he looked down the street, he said, ``This is the most amount of people I have ever seen here at once.''
It was a coincidence that he was visiting during Induction Weekend, he said, but it was a good time to try and sell autographs. He said he sold quite a few, even with rain during the morning.
Schneider was selling autographs for $20.
